The Killing of Ismail Haniyeh, the chief of Hamas in Tehran is being touted as the biggest war kill achieved by Israel but it must not be misconstrued as a game over for Hamas.
Hamas leaders and commanders have been annihilated and assassinated over decades but the group has continued to regroup and combine forces to rise from the ashes. One recalls how the former Hamas chief was killed in 2003 and a month later his successor was also assassinated, but new leadership has emerged. So, to assume that with this the Hamas will now retreat would be preposterous if not downright fallacious.
Hamas Chief Ismail Haniyeh was killed in "a treacherous Zionist attack on his residence in Tehran" on Wednesday as reported by the group. Clearly, the timing and location were carefully chosen. This happened in Tehran, right after the inauguration ceremony of Masoud Peshkian, the newly elected president of Iran. Was this deliberate? Knowing that the security apparatus may be fragile towards Haniyeh? After all it’s a nation in transition, the newly formed government would not exactly have its interior ministry on the job yet and so the opportunity was used to strike at this moment. Could there be a case of sabotage, since Iran was perceived to be a safe haven for Hamas leaders, has that now changed forever?
In terms of how this is significant two perspectives must not be missed. First, it has now officially dragged Iran into the war game, front, and centre the fact that the killing has happened in Tehran is a loud message to Iran as well that Israel can strike anyone anywhere. And second, this will have implications for the US elections with the Biden administration eager to claim credit since it has actively supported Netanyahu in his war against Gaza.
Having said that one must not forget to spare a word for the innocent civilians getting killed every day in Gaza. Perhaps the Palestinians would now hope that this would quench Netanyahu’s thirst and the indiscriminate killing in Gaza will now see a respite.
